The present invention relates to a lapping system for manufacturing heads of a data storage system. In particular, the present invention relates to an improved lapping system for controlling the sensor height for transducer elements along a bar forming a plurality of heads.
Heads of a data storage system are fabricated on a common substrate (also called the wafer) by depositing a plurality of layers onto the surface of the substrate to form an array of transducers by known deposition techniques. The substrate or wafer is cut to separate rows of transducers to form a plurality of bars having a plurality of transducers spaced therealong. Each bar is lapped or machined to a desired sensor height (throat height for inductive-type transducers or stripe height for magnetoresistive ("MR") transducers"). Lapping refers to a process of removing material from the surface of the bar which will form the air bearing surface ("ABS"). Sensor height generally refers to the relation between the air bearing surface and the sensor elements of the transducers formed on a face of the head.
Head size is decreasing and the number of heads formed along a transducer bar is increasing. Because of decreasing head size, it is desirable to provide increasing manufacturing tolerance control for heads to assure optimum performance of a disc drive. A transducer bar is supported by a carrier relative to a lapping surface to machine a lower surface of the bar to a desired sensor height. Electronic lapping guides ("ELG") are located along the bar to control sensor height along the entire length of the bar. Prior lapping systems bent or adjusted the profile of the carrier to compensate for dimension variations along the length of the bar. With decreasing head size, it is desirable to provide more accurate profile adjustments to the carrier to more closely correspond to dimension variations of the bar.